Fokou: We'll See Who Has Been Working

Linebacker Moise Fokou arrived at his first training camp in 2009 as a seventh-round pick fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster. Now entering his third training camp with the Eagles, Fokou has advice for the current crop of rookies who enter what will be a unique camp.

"It's going to be grueling. The only advice I can give to the new guys is stay in your playbook. It's going to be tough because you don't have a lot of time to make mistakes," said Fokou, the team's starting strongside linebacker. "We've got a new defensive staff coming in and it's going to be a lot of learning going on, but we're going to have to kind of learn on the roll and make the best of everything."

In his rookie year, Fokou had the benefit of OTAs and mini-camps to learn the defense. This year, there were no OTAs and mini-camps. The Eagles have to get their starters ready for the September 11 opener in St. Louis. On top of that, the Eagles have a new defensive coordinator in Juan Castillo who will be putting his stamp on the scheme.

Typically, teams can carefully watch their players train and develop during an offseason. This offseason, Fokou said, will prove who was able to be disciplined during this unusual offseason.

"Once we get into the thick of things, putting the pads back on and running again, I think you're going to see the difference between the guys who have been working and the guys who haven't," Fokou said. "It's going to be something to look forward to."